Stephen Curry called for first flagrant foul of his 17-season NBA career

The Golden State Warriors usually leave the dirty work to Draymond Green.

But on Tuesday, it was Stephen Curry who got called for a flagrant foul in the first quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder. It marked a career first in Curry’s 1,190th NBA game.

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Per ESPN’s Anthony Slater, the flagrant foul was the first of Curry’s career.

As might be expected from Curry, it wasn’t a flagrant of the physical variety. Instead, Curry landed under a jump shooter on a closeout.

The foul took place with 1.3 seconds remaining in the quarter. Isaiah Joe attempted to beat the buzzer with a 3. Curry closed out on defense with his left foot extended in Joe’s landing zone. Joe’s right foot landed on Curry’s extended foot, and his ankle twisted.

Officials called it a personal foul on the floor.

But upon review, officials upgraded the infraction to a flagrant foul. Referee John Goble delivered Curry the bad news.

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“Curry closes out from a distance with an extended leg,” Goble said. “Joe lands on Curry’s foot, creating a potential for injury as a result of the contact. Therefore the foul has been upgraded to a flagrant foul, penalty 1.”

Joe went on to hit three free throws to extend OKC’s lead to 34-25 at the end of the quarter.

Curry shook his head in disbelief on the bench at the explanation. But he didn’t have much of a case.

It may not have looked like a flagrant foul in the traditional sense, but by the NBA’s reckless closeout standard, Curry’s flagrant foul was textbook. If you extend your foot under a landing shooter who lands on your foot, you will get called for a flagrant foul. Or you should, at least.

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Curry’s got a long way to catch up with his longtime teammate. Per ESPN, Green has 27 flagrant fouls over the course of his career — 19 in the regular season and eight in the postseason.

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